The Importance of Rest in Postpartum Care

Over the weekend I started a four month immersion course called Yin Sanctuary and it really reminded me of the importance of rest in postpartum care.

The course is all about learning ancient wisdom, herbal medicine and ancestral traditional ways of postpartum care from the elders.

The day started with learning how to cook a Ayurvedic Meal for lunch which was put in the slow cooker, filled with vegetables and herbs. Then we learnt a traditional Japanese breakfast which consisted of miso soup and egg whilst layered in the most beautiful herbs.

It was incredible to learn new ways that I never knew existed.

Our very first speaker was matriarchal elder from Kombumerri land…. Cherie.

We started by giving thanks to the land and we got to listen some traditional aboriginal songs.

We heard about the ways that they have given birth in the creek on the Gold Coast that they call in for their traditional Birthing Waters. It was such an amazing experience and I felt so honoured to be part of this and learn.

One of the most important factors of postpartum recovery is rest. This allows your body to heal on its own.

Let’s be honest, the female body is phenomenal. Women’s bodies can create life, house them, grow them and give birth in whichever way baby may arrive .

If we truly take a moment to think about the fact that your body has grown a human inside of you, it’s magical!

Whilst growing a baby, the body enables stretching of the ligaments and structural base of the womb. If you birth a baby naturally, your cervix open for baby to arrive and once baby has arrived within seconds the cervix closes back down again…. this is simply magical.

Here is a photo showing the sizing of the womb. After baby has arrived, the womb is still between 1kg to 1.5 kg, so with that much added weight inside your body, rest is even more important.

Your body goes through a lot of work in those nine months and we need to allow it to simply rest once your baby has arrived.

Rest will allow your body to heal by itself in time, so if you can try to rest for three weeks postpartum.

My advice is to start organising your postpartum plan whilst you are pregnant. Arrange some support to look after your other children, organise who will cook food and bring it to you and do the cleaning and the laundry.

We truly need to honour our body and give it time to heal.

During the rest phase,  you’re also creating a bond with your baby which is so incredibly special and also needed for your baby’s social and developmental skills later in life.

Bonding and attachment is vital for both mama and baby’s wellness, physically and mentally.

So while you get to heal and be with your baby in bed for those three weeks you’re also creating the foundation for your baby at the same time.

The saying ‘it takes a village‘ is so true.

Pregnancy, birth and postpartum is such a sacred journey and we should honour it in the simplest yet most effective way…… with rest.

You might also like to read Your Holistic Postnatal Recovery Checklist.

Much love,

Jess Ngaheu
Maternal Bodywork Specialist

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The Importance of Postpartum Care and Support

One of the biggest misconceptions that we have around the postnatal period is that we need to get back our pre-baby body and go back to the domestic duties or work straight away! I wanted to share with you today some thoughts about the importance of postpartum care and support. 

Society has warped us in to thinking it’s normal to get straight back into life and ‘get your body back’! I believe we need to slow down and honour this period of time.  We need rest and to spend time in a cocoon-like environment to nurture and honour ourselves and our new baby. 

Family and friends hopefully can come and help take care of the chores and household duties so we can recover from such a transformational experience, whilst nurturing and honouring what our body has been through. 

Those precious moments you have with a new born baby are so important. 

This is also a time when we should be nourishing our body with herbs and nutrients to repair the physiological changes that have just occurred. These changes to our body were not small!  They were huge! Creating and growing a human life inside our bodies is simply remarkable. 

I am currently studying postpartum recovery and something interesting I have learnt is that the first 42 days postpartum is so imperative for support and proper healing as it sets you up for the next 42 years!

Here are some really important things to consider (that I think we all really need to know about postnatal healing):

Mother Nature and Hormones :

Both mother and baby receive the benefits of powerful and restorative hormones such as oxytocin which help in part with bonding. Beta-endorphins act as natural opioids, helping to stabilise stress, reduce fatigue and restore balance. Prolactin helps with lactation. The physical intimacy and closeness that the mother and baby unit experience along with eye contact, nuzzling at the breast and bonding through the physical care of the newborn, enable these hormones to release in the proper amounts thus promoting all of the natural benefits that aid in healing and rebalancing. It’s a perfectly beautiful, natural support system!

Adrenal Burnout:

Unfortunately, it is very common for women to suffer from the effects of adrenal burnout in the post partum period. Some mothers may have had a stressful or long labour and delivery, which is often complicated by unnecessary medical intervention. They may not know the proper knowledge or education relating to post partum care. A lot of this can be then exacerbated if mothers do not rest and recover in the first 42 days. Sometimes if this cycle of fatigue and stress is left unsupported for too long, this can lead to a true clinical state of postpartum depression.

So rest and support in the postpartum period is imperative in so many ways!

I feel such a strong pull to help woman and make a positive difference in today’s society, so I am continuing my studies into postnatal care. I have already studied postnatal healing, nutrition, wellness, massage (the list goes on) and now I am also studying Ayurvedic Post Natal Doula training.

My inspiration is to be of service to postnatal mamas using the teachings of ancient wisdom.  This aspect will help me  create some beautiful offerings for nourishing and restorative postpartum care. 

Much love, 

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